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Poopsheet, a gentle piece of advice for your monthly mini comic service: put a clearly visible link to it on your main page somewhere! I eventually had to back out of your site and try again through Google to get the link, and that’s only because I knew it existed, which most people don’t yet because it’s a new (and great) idea. Unless there is a link that I just missed because I’m a dummy, but if that’s the case other dummies might want to read comics too, so make it idiot proof! That’s enough time on my teeny tiny soapbox today, how’s the monthly comic this time around? It’s a collection of strips from various artists, with stories dealing with Caesar Meadows showing various ways to start a strip, Roger Langridge showing four types of panels that always work, Billy McKay discovering what lives inside of his electric razor, and Hal Mundane getting into an argument with himself and losing. This was the monthly comic for October (it’s the start of December as I write this, meaning I’m a bit behind), but there is a new comic out for October, so here’s hoping that this is all still going well for Poopsheet. If you do appreciate the idea of a monthly mini comic service, I’m thinking that subscribing yourself would be a damned fine way to show that support… $5 (monthly)

For you comics whippersnappers out there, Poopsheet has been an ongoing online comics library for over a decade now, and if you ever want to buy a pile of mini comics, that should be the first place you stop. Rick Bradford (the head honcho over there) has started up a monthly comics service, meaning every month he publishes another comic (or two, like this month) and they’re delivered to your door. There’s a $5 monthly fee, and he’s using the proceeds to continue working on a mammoth online mini comic and fanzine database, which is a damned worthy cause. So now that all the specifics are out of the way, how about the comic itself? It’s a short anthology and the stories deal with misunderstanding Shakespeare (Roger Langridge), taking us all on a psychodelic journey (Caesar Meadows), and a brief saga about assault and card playing. Sort of, anyway. It’s an eclectic mix, and a solid start for this project. For what it’s worth, I’m all for this idea. Paying a monthly fee to help support a giant comics database like that is itself a ridiculously worthy cause, and you get monthly comics out of it to boot! What’s not to like? $5 (monthly, I assume you can buy these individually as well)

If you like the old black and white cartoons, you’ll probably love this book. It certainly matches them in sheer mayhem. The book is all over the place, with the strongest stories being, by far, the longer, cartoon-like stories. Mars, a haunted house and karma are all covered here. Anybody who animated this would probably make a fortune, at least they would if they marketed it to the right people. There are also plenty of little musical numbers, some of which work and some of which don’t. Lot’s of little mostly funny one-page gag strips too. I think you can see that the art is phenomenal, so I shouldn’t have to do much convincing there. The writing is mostly good too. It has a playful, whimsical style to it, while still being a little bit harsh at times (the humor, that is. Don’t think that this would be a wonderful book for kids or anything, although it’s never too gross). It’s $2.95, send the man an e-mail for info.

Kudos to Christina Wald for that cover, there’s plenty to unpack before you even open the book.Â In case you can’t read the fine print (which is a shame, as there are jokes all over the cover) this is the advertising issue, basically an excuse for the people involved to take the “random fake ads” gag and have some real fun with it.Â Edward Pun (which can’t possibly be his real name) shows a bad day that ends in a clever ad for a massage chair, Brad Foster has a “rehabilitated” quack doctor, Ryan Estrada shows off the civic conscience of the actual Big Boy, Roger Langridge has the inspired idea of selling “mother in a jar” (just in case you’re too independent), Dean LeCrone & Allen Freeman have a time machine for sale, Tyler Sticka plays with celebrities in his bit (and hopes to get sued to “land a major distribution deal”), John Lustig again steals the show with his bit about the biological clock and where to place the blame after a bad break-up, and Jim Siergey has some games for children to help them find their place in life (as automatons).Â That’s leaving out plenty of stuff, as this thing is packed with ads that are only 1/2 or 1/3 of a page long by all sorts of folks.Â Big laughs, big issue, all kinds of stuff to pick through, what more do you want?Â $4